Entries tagged with: Phobia

Creep thrashers Ghoul have announced the "Weapons of Mosh Destruction 3-D" tour running for three weeks starting in May with Phobia and Nekrofilth. The tour kicks off in Denver and hits Maryland Death Fest before finishing up in California (where they'll be back in October for California Death Fest).

They stop in NYC on May 20 at Saint Vitus with additional support from Artificial Brain.Tickets for that show are on sale now.

Before heading out on that tour, Ghoul is appearing at Kirk Von Hammett's Fear FestEvil with Meshuggah, High On Fire, Orchid and more. The festival goes down April 10-12 at RockBar Theatre in San Jose, CA, and has now added a free outdoor Carnival of Chaos taking place outside the venue. The carnival will feature "an authentic freakshow, carnival games, hearse car show, Kirk's '36 Ford and crypt, and various vendors all weekend." Tickets for the festival are still available, but the VIP and Murder Mystery Dinner tickets are sold out.

Kirk won't be performing at his fest, but Metallica are headlining this year's Lollapalooza.

We recently wrapped up a three-part series at Invisible Oranges titled "The Story of Lucifer's Hammer" by guest contributor Avinash Mittur. The piece tackles the resurgence of metal in California's Bay Area during the late '90s/early '00s through recollections of those responsible for the Lucifer's Hammer metal club. Avinash got a hold of some of the scene's biggest names, including Mike Scalzi (Slough Feg, Hammers of Misfortune), Ross Sewage (Impaled, Ghoul, Exhumed, Ludicra), John Cobbett (Hammers of Misfortune, Slough Feg, Ludicra, Vhöl), Aesop Dekker (Ludicra, Agalloch, Vhöl, Worm Ouroboros), and Leon del Muerte (Impaled, Exhumed, Phobia, Intronaut, Nausea), among others. As you'd expect given those participants, the anecdotes are on another level. A few choice selections.

"We were the only Bay Area band in the early '90s that played total old-school heavy metal. Around here, nobody wanted anything to do with New Wave of British Heavy Metal," Scalzi says. "No way, forget it. In '95, I remember Iron Maiden playing places that we would play. Seriously. Can you imagine? Iron Maiden playing a place smaller than Slim's? It was insane!"

"That was an amazing, amazing night," says Cobbett. "What we're talking about is a really shitty punk rock dive bar with Mayhem and people came from miles around to see that one, man. I had bands calling me on the phone and getting all fuckin' Varg Vikernes on me saying, 'I will kill to play with Mayhem. I will kill to get on that show.'" Cobbett chuckles at the ridiculousness of the situation. "I had to go the butcher and get skinned cow heads and bring them to the show. It was amazing, man."

"There was a really diehard core of regulars. It's like that story about the Sex Pistols show that eight people went to and every one of them formed an awesome band," Dekker says. "It was like that, people were meeting at the shows, bands would then be popping and then they'd be like, 'We want to play.' A lot of bands formed from people meeting at Lucifer's Hammer and then they'd play their first show at Lucifer's Hammer. It was sort of like sowing seeds in a sense."

While North America will probably never be able to give the EU a run for its money when it comes to huge blowout metal festivals in the Wacken or Roadburn vein, the lands on this side of the Atlantic are hosting an increasing number of smaller but more targeted (and thereby more appealing, if you ask me) shindigs. Hot on the heels of yesterday's inaugural Deathwish Fest announcement comes another first-timer fest: Southern Darkness Fest, which will take place in Tampa, FL on August 23. As the fest site puts it:

Southern Darkness Festival brings the best of extreme and experimental music right to Tampa's historic district of Ybor. More than 20 bands will deliver a diverse range of heavy music, from Post Rock all the way to Grindcore. With a lineup that is second to none, SDF is bound to leave a mark in Florida's heavy music scene and turn heads worldwide.

Organized by music fans for music fans, SDF sets out to create a special experience for fans and artists alike. The historic district of Ybor is not only the perfect setting for an artistically minded crowd, but also houses Tampa's best live music venues - all in walking distance from one another.

Though Southern Darkness will take place in the historic seat of American death metal, its lineup ironically doesn't include any death metal -- Maruta and Yautja (see? they're everywhere) are as close as it comes. Most of the fest's big-name draws are post-metal or sludge bands: Pelican, Black Tusk, Zoroaster, Junius, Mouth of the Architect, A Storm of LIght, and so forth. There's also a solid grind/hardcore contingent -- the aforementioned Maruta, Phobia, Weekend Nachos, Coke Bust, Strong Intention, and more.

The fest will be organized along CMJ-esque lines; it'll take place at a number of venues simultaneously, with a single ticket pass earning you entrance to all of them. (If you know Tampa, you may be familiar with them: The Orpheum, Crowbar, Ybor Live.) Specific show details are still to come. Tickets will be $35 for presale and $40 on the day of the fest, which is pretty reasonable, given that most of this fest's attendees will probably have to travel for it. They're not on sale yet, but will be on an unspecified date in late April; in the meantime, you can keep an eye on the fest's Facebook for updates.

More bands will be announced soon, but the full initial lineup is below...

A couple weeks back we talked about Metal Meowlisha IV: A Headbangers Furball, death metal greats Obituary's fundraiser fest for feral cats in the Tampa area on 12/21 featuring Exhumed and Terrorizer (lineup below). Those in need of further proof of the inborn bond between metal man and kitty cat need look no further than the previously mentioned Metaldudes Cats book titled, fittingly, Metal Cats will be published in April 2014 and is meow available for pre-order. The book, cover art above, contains photos of over 100 metal musicians and fans with their cats, including:

That's a lot of cats! A portion of the proceeds of Metal Cats will go to no-kill shelters.

In other metal book news, a new Slayer biography has emerged, titled Slayer 66 2/3: The Jeff & Dave Years. A Metal Band Biography. The book was written by DX Herris, who previously has written about Slayer in his 33 1/3 series entry, Slayer's Reign in Blood. The book clocks in at a whopping 628 and here's a description:

This timely rock biography answers burning questions, shatters popular myths, and uncovers new truths about Slayer, the iconic group that became the embodiment of heavy metal. This full-length, exhaustively researched account of the thrash kings' career recaps and reevaluates the years guitar hero Jeff Hanneman and drum legend Dave Lombardo were in the group. Over the course of 59 chapters, 400 footnotes and three appendices, it profiles the members and presents dramatic scenes from 32 years in the Abyss: A fresh look at the group's early days. Reign in Blood tours. A European invasion. The Palladium riot. The seat cushion chaos concert. Newly unearthed details from Lombardo's turbulent history with the band. Historical artwork and photos never seen in public before. The entire diabolical discography. Hanneman's hard times. The Big Four's big year. Lombardo's final exit...

BrooklynVegan is proud to present the new video from Phobia, "Contradiction / Submission Hold," a pair of tracks from the band's latest LP Remnants of Filth. The video is directed by Frank Huang, videographer, member of the MetalInjection video team, and NYC metal staple. Check out the video for the tracks for the first time below.

Be warned, the video features some disturbing and violent images, including footage of animal testing, and just may be NSFW.

Phobia clearly did not grind down NYC enough in their Saturday appearance, so the band will do it again tonight at The Charleston (6/11). The California band will join Scowl and one more band (TBA) at the venue.

I spent my Saturday night (6/9) split across two venues, spending the early part of the evening at Saint Vitus catching Ramming Speed, Full of Hell and Skullshitter and the tail end of the evening watching Leather with Shoxxat Acheron. After the predominantly doom-oriented evening the night before, lightning-fast speed was a welcome change.

Skullshitter opened Saint Vitus that night as part of a five-band bill that also included Phobia and Strong Intention. The band, which features a member of Mutant Supremacy/Trenchgrinder, play death-metal tinged grind which was plagued by technical diffuculties throughout the set. Falling drumkits caused many an audience member to run on stage to make sure the set was secure, with the drummer's sibling eventually settling on stage to make sure it didnt move. Despite the equipment issues, Skullshitter were great. Catch them Tuesday (6/12) at Acheron with Whitehorse.

Full of Hell followed Skullshitter, playing a hardcore/grind set peppered with noise while the crowd warmed up and started a circle pit. Vocalist Dylan is an instigator, driving the kids nuts by performing on the floor and pushing his way through the crowd. I've enjoyed these guys for a while and though Full of Hell is young, they have a bright future ahead.

Boston's Ramming Speed followed, and these boys know how to play a live show. Though primarily a thrash band, Ramming Speed knows that the genre's roots are in punk rock and their live show reflects that. Super-high energy set that, even if I didn't already like them, would be endlessly entertaining to watch.

After a few songs from Ramming Speed, I hightailed it over to Acheron knowing that I had missed sets from Raw Meat and Dipers as part of that evening's punk bonanza. Shoxx had already taken the stage by the time I had arrived, ripping out noise-punk inflected hardcore riffs while the crowd raised their fists. With ex-members of Nomos, Pollution & Battletorn amongst them, there was no way that Shoxx could be anything less than interesting and they definitely didnt disappoint. Great band.

Philadelphia's Leather, who recently released a new 7" and is working on a new LP closed out both the Acheron and my evening with a punk rock set that dipped into their current three seven inches (one of which is the pressing of their demo). The crowd moved for the duration of their set and much like Full of Hell, their vocalist performed the entire set from the floor.

More pictures from Saint Vitus and Acheron are below, alongside video of the entire Saint Vitus show with Phobia and Strong Intention included.

With all of the drag queens, bikini-clad girls, and slow-rolling neon cars blasting hip hop, it would be perfectly understandable to mistake East 7th Ave in Ybor City for another Saturday night on the strip. Yet the clubs of East 7th had been invaded by the the black-shirted, devil-horn weilding crew: the fourth-annual Scion Rock Fest was in town.

Ybor City is located north of downtown Tampa, Florida and was the site of 2012's edition, boasting names like Sleep, Merzbow, Oxbow, Repulsion, Sick of it All, Suffocation and many others across four stages (The Orpheum, CZAR Bar, Crowbar, and The Ritz). Though I never made it over to the Orpheum, I saw my fair share of incredible performances across the remaining three stages, many of which will likely never happen again.

Thoughts on Scion Rock Fest 2012, pictures, and video from many of the sets are below.

Frontwoman Therese Lanz: I would describe Mares of Thrace as an armada of angry drag queens riding nuclear warhead-equipped rabid rhinoceroses in a kamikaze mission of destruction into an Alabama Pentecostal megachurch service.

While I can't say that the above description provided by Therese of Mares of Thrace is entirely accurate, the band was hellbent on destruction when they played Saint Vitus on May 15th. The band, who is currently touring on the strength of their new LP The Pilgrimage (out now via Sonic Unyon), was joined by Brooklyn doom favorites Batillus (who played new tracks, some from their upcoming split with Whitehorse), Nashville post-metal quartet Sky Burial, and Brooklyn sludge-trio Mortals. Lots more pics from the show are below.

In related news, Batillus is scheduled to play with Whitehorse and Unearthly Trance at Acheron on June 12th. New band Skullshitter, which features a member of Mutant Supremacy, will open the show. Skullshitter is also scheduled to play on June 9th at Saint Vitus with Phobia, Strong Intention, Ramming Speed, and Full of Hell. Tickets are still available. Stream the Skullshitter demo along with the pictures below.

After teasing with an EP in late 2010, long-running grind crew Phobia are back with Remnants Of Filth, the band's new LP due via Willowtip on June 5th. Phobia has always had a bit of a revolving door in terms of lineup but their current is impressive: Bryan Fajardo (Noisear, Kill The Client, Gridlink) sits in on drums and Dorian Rainwater (Noisear) on six-string alongside Callum MacKenzie, CC Loessin and lifer Shane "The Pain" Mclachlan. It's this lineup, with Scott Hull behind the boards, that makes Remnants of Filth so potent, as exhibited on the scathing new single "Dementia Having Overdose" available to stream for the first time below. Preorder your copy of the record via the label.

As discussed, Phobia is playing both Chaos in Tejas and Scion Rock Fest this year. The band ALSO has a show scheduled at Saint Vitus on June 9th with Black Anvil (who played Saint Vitus last night), Strong Intention and Ramming Speed. Tickets are on sale.

Scion Rock Fest have announced their first round of 2012 bands, including some very interesting and out-of-the-box choices. Among the announced so far include the impressive Repulsion, All Pigs Must Die, Merzbow, Sleep (who just played Roadburn), Church of Misery (them too, and they play NYC soon), and Oxbow, but the lineup also includes names like Terror, Psychic TV, and Cerebral Ballzy and more... bands that seem a bit out of the ordinary for a traditionally all-metal festival entering its fourth year. The show goes down on June 2nd across four venues in Tampa FL. As always, the show is free (with RSVP that opens on 4/20 at noon).

UPDATE: Full lineup has been released, check out the flyer and lineup below.

Chaos in Tejas (May 31-June 3 in Austin) have announced ANOTHER batch of bands to add to their ridiculous lineup including Saint Vitus, Church of Misery, No Statik, Toys That Kill, Pegasus, Martial Canterel, Anasazi, Bloodwing (mems of The Spits, who are on tour soon), Harm's Way, Hatred Surge, the Hex Dispensers, John Wesley Coleman, Joyce Manor, and many many others. The current full lineup and flyer is below and tickets are FINALLY going on sale TODAY (1/31).

Doom legends Saint Vitus are currently preparing their new LP Lillie: F-65 for Season of Mist. The record, their eighth and first in seventeen years (!), is tentatively set for release at the end of March. More details are forthcoming.

The Chaos in Tejas lineup expands more with another round of additions including the first Breakdown show in 25 years with the 87 demo lineup, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (one of two upcoming Austin shows for Ted), the Clean (first Texas show ever), Deviated Instinct, Death Evocation (1st show), Mass Grave, Pierced Arrows, Australian garage rockers Royal Headache, No Fucker, New Orleans Bounce artist Katey Red, the Impalers, Cold World, Creem, Avon Ladies, Backtrack, Bi-Marks, Phobia and many others. Full list of new additions and the latest flyer is below.

The additions joined previouslyannounced bands like Antisect, Winter, The Mob, Varukers, Best Coast, Moss Icon, Dropdead, Ringworm, Midnight, and many more.

Chaos in Tejas will add another 40+ bands in the coming weeks and tickets will go on sale on January 31st. More details are forthcoming.

Four stages and more. Fun Fun Fun Fest truly is non-stop fun of many varieties. BBG spent most of Friday at the Black Stage (the one Danzig headlined). His pictures, including Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall, Murder City Devils, Russian Circles and the afterparty at Red 7, continue below...

Meanwhile, Phobia is preparing to release a split 7" with long-standing Irish death-dealers Abbaddon Incarnate. The split, due via Underground Movement, includes seven tracks with Phobia committing four, and AI dropping the rest including "Cthonic Sacrifice" which makes its first appearance above. To purchase a 7", send 8.5 Euro ($11.50/7.20 GBP) to ianlawless [at] gmail [cot] com, along with your name, mailing address, and desired color (black or white vinyl). Album art and the song stream is below.

Richmond will represent again on March 5th as Lord By Fire and Windhand have added a show at Acheron. Lord By Fire is currently offering their sludgy-doom record for free at their bandcamp, or you can stream it below. Windhand may be fresh on the scene, but these ex-members of The Might Could and Facedowninshit rip out some fierce old-school doom riffery. Get there!

That Phobia/AI art, and the full list of suggested upcoming NYC metal shows below...

Phobia have added a show at The Charleston on March 10th with Mirrors and Wires and Brick Mower. The show is their lone date on the East Coast, and looks to be a layover before the band heads to Puerto Rico for a string of dates. Phobia is also scheduled to play Austin during SXSW as part of "Heavy Metal Parking Lot". More details on that show are forthcoming.

Sure fire sign a record will be killer? Seventeen songs in twenty-two minutes. Longstanding grindcore killers Phobia have churned out another piece of hellfire with their new EP for Relapse, Unrelenting. After splits with Extinction of Mankind and the unstoppable Gadget, the Orange County band have released another slab of miscreant mayhem that's chockful of crusty downtuned riffs, blasts, and foul guttural vocals all with the throttle in the red the entire time. Check out the new song "Revolt Your Life" available for download above and streaming below with three other tracks: "Out Of Control", "If You Used To Be Punk, Then You Never Were" and "Mental State".

Phobia is gearing up to head out for a string of southern shows with the regional masters of dirge and destruction, Eyehategod.

Phobia and Kill The Client have more than just an unforgiving grind assault in common. Both bands share drummer Bryan Fajardo, and Kill The Client also have a new record, Set For Extinction, out now on Relapse. Highly recommended.

A full Phobia and a full Kill The Client live set, as well as the song stream and all tour dates are below.

Municipal Waste ends their tour in their hometown of Richmond on Friday (12/11), and after a month away from the road, hop on a flight to Europe to continue the madness. Brutal Truth also has exotic locales in their sights; after Richmond, the triumphant and reunited band hits Japan for a set of dates starting on 12/15, but will be back in time for Dan Lilker to join up with Crucifist for some January dates on the east coast. Phobia carries on from Richmond into the south before ending the tour in Texas.

Full tour dates for all bands, as well as some videos with the rest of the pictures (and some setlists), below...

Cauldron recently dropped their debut album, Chained To The Nite, on Earache. Dig on "Conjuring The Mass" above. The band is on board for a select set of dates with MW. This past Sunday's Toronto show (12/6) served as the setting for an upcoming live DVD for the Canucks. More on that DVD soon.

Blacklisted recently surprised us all by releasing No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me on ZERO notice, a digital and vinyl only release via Deathwish Inc. The album follows their monumental Heavier Than Heaven, Lonelier Than God which dropped in 2008 on the label. Pick the new record up here.

They say that the clothes make the man, but in the music world, the drummer makes the band. That's the only way to explain the string of successes that have followed Dave Witte since he first sat behind the kit as a member of the influential yet under-appreciated Human Remains. Since then, Witte has played with some of the greatest bands in the heavy underground, laying the back beat to names as powerful as Municipal Waste, Discordance Axis, Anodyne, Black Army Jacket, Melt Banana, and we can't forget about Burnt By The Sun.

Burnt By The Sun recently released their swansong, Heart of Darkness, via Relapse Records. In celebration of this last LP, the band will embark on final tour of Europe in October with only one US date scheduled: October 2nd at Cake Shop with Tombs, Black Anvil, Bloodhorse, and Torchbearer. Considering the band members' current undertakings, it isn't out the question to say that this could be their last show for a very very long time.

With that as a primer, I fired some questions at Dave Witte about Municipal Waste, the end of Burnt By The Sun, and the possiblity of him returning to the kit for Human Remains, Discordance Axis or Black Army Jacket. The conversation is below....

Relapse is KILLIN' IT in the 09 so far. In one month's time, Relapse will destroy the Earth with THREE grind releases that could all potentially make my list of favorites for the year! First up, Mumakil's new album Behold The Failure which is out NOW on Relapse. Made up of ex members of Knut, Behold The Failure has been in constant rotation since it dropped on Mar 31st. Hear the whole thing here. Then on April 17th, Relapse aims to make you empty your wallets, by releasing both the new Brutal Truth (Evolution Through Revolution) and Agoraphobic Nosebleed (Agorapocalypse) on THE SAME DAY. In other ANb/Brutal Truth news, if you skate, dig on the ANb, Total Fucking Destruction (featuring Richard Hoak of BT), Crom, and Cryptic Slaughter decks for sale here. ANb and Crom dropped a split 7" which is fading fast.... head here to scoop it before it goes bye-bye.

A month or so after the grind mayhem, Relapse will drop the new Coalesce, Ox, their first record since the classic 0:12 Revolution is Just Listening which was release TEN YEARS AGO. The quartet recently debuted two new tracks; check out "Wild Ox Moan" streaming at their myspace and download "Questions To Root Out Fools" above!

Swedish gore-grinders General Surgery will drop their new album Corpus In Extremis on Listenable Records on April 7th, which includes the massive "Restrained Remains" available for download above! Check out their myspace pageor their home page for a preview, dig on the album cover (to the right), and swing way low for tour dates.

Mournful Congregation recently dropped their new LP, The June Frost, on Enucleation Records, and if you like your guitar chords served up in first-gear (or maybe even in neutral) this funeral doom opus is for you. Check out the above snippet MP3 featuring moments from The June Frost above, and pick that record up here. For more on the band, check out an interview with Mournful Congregation here.

The Atomic Bitchwax will re-release their LP TAB4 on Tee Pee Records. Check out "Revival" available for download above and look for the record on 4/21.

Folkin' black proggers Agalloch has announced that they are at work on their fourth LP, the follow-up the the critically acclaimed Ashes Against The Grain! The band recently parted ways with The End and "have received several offers ranging from the ridiculous to the very interesting" with respect to a new home, but no decision is expected until 2009. Meanwhile, Agalloch also announced the release of The Demonstration Archive, a retrospective of songs from 1996 - 1998 before they signed to the label. For more info on The Demonstration Archive, including how to pick it up, head here.

As we announced a couple weeks ago, doomy instrumental trio Capricorns have released River Bear Your Bones in jolly old England, but the US will see the record on September 30th. Have no fear, as we have posted 25% of the whole record (above) for you to download!

Intronaut's new record, Prehistoricisms, is up for preorder, with or without a limited edition tee ($4 more). Check out "The Literal Black Cloud" from Prehistoricismshere.

Black Anvil

World, Black Anvil. Black Anvil, world. I wish it was that easy, because word needs to get out on these grim lords constructed from ex-members of Kill Your Idols. Drawing from early black metal and thrash and with only an occasional foray into Emperor-style tremolo picking, their new LP Time Insults The Mind is an unholy creature of shadow. Check out "Ten Talons Deep" available for download above and the video of the band tearing through "Deathsomnia" (also from Time...). and pick up the record at Momentum Records when it drops. The band is also playing Traxx in Ronkonkoma on August 23rd and The Charleston on Sept 30th.

Illinois' Nachtmystium have released details on their new LP... and EP! Yepper, thats a double whammy from the Chicago dudes with the killer "Instinct". Check out the new song "Your True Enemy" from full-length Assassins and "Depravity" from their Worldfall e.p. at their myspace.